Puget Sound Innovation Stories

Legislative Dist. 39
Regional On-site Sewage System Loan Program

Regional On-site Sewage System Loan Program

Helping homeowners repair or replace failing on-site sewage systems The Regional On-site Sewage System Loan Program (RLP) in Washington State consolidates multiple county-level on-site sewage system loan programs into a single public-private partnership between the...

Sultan River Diversion Dam Modification

Sultan River Diversion Dam Modification

Salmon return to Upper Sultan River after 90 years For the first time in 90 years, salmon are using 6.5-miles of stream habitat in the upper Sultan River, thanks to an innovative project by the Snohomish County PUD that opened the river for fish passage past the...

Clean Samish Initiative

Clean Samish Initiative

Cleaner water for shellfish beds The Puget Sound Partnership 's Leadership Council set a goal of upgrading 10,800 acres of shellfish beds by 2020. Over 4,000 of those acres are in the Samish River watershed. The Clean Samish Initiative is a partnership working to...

ECOSS Spill Kit Program

ECOSS Spill Kit Program

Preventing accidental spills before they drain into waterways Stormwater runoff is the leading source of pollution in Puget Sound watersheds. During storms, rainwater picks up everyday spills and leaks from business activities, construction work and vehicles. These...

Using Beavers for Salmon Habitat Restoration

Using Beavers for Salmon Habitat Restoration

Protecting wildlife and helping landowners builds salmon habitat naturally The Tulalip Tribes are collaborating with an unlikely partner to restore habitat for salmon: beavers. For four years, the Tribe has relocated about 100 beavers from private lands in the...

Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative

Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative

Local people. Local solutions. The Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative catalyzes and empowers local communities to conserve and restore their marine resources. Established in 1998, the Northwest Straits Commission provides funding, training and support to...

Making connections for salmon in the Skagit

Making connections for salmon in the Skagit

Photo credit: Eric Mickelson, Skagit River System Cooperative Project Summary Illabot Creek is a highly productive tributary of the upper Skagit River that supports relatively large populations of Chinook, chum, coho, and pink salmon, native char, and steelhead trout....

Moga Farm Restoration Project

Moga Farm Restoration Project

CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT: 01 LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT: 39 WRIA: 7 CITY, COUNTY: Snohomish, Snohomish County   PROJECT SUMMARY The Snohomish River is the second largest producer of Endangered Species Act-listed Chinook salmon in the Puget Sound. The Moga Farm...

Puget Sound National Coastal Wetlands Conservation

Puget Sound National Coastal Wetlands Conservation

In early 2017, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service awarded the Washington State Department of Ecology with $4.7 million in National Coastal Wetlands Conservation grants to fund six projects to restore and protect wetlands in Puget Sound and the Grays Harbor area. The...

Leque Island Estuary

Leque Island Estuary

In the Stillaguamish River watershed, 85 percent of historical tidal marsh habitat has been displaced by other uses. Leque Island's tidal marsh habitat is particularly valuable for young Chinook salmon as they transition from fresh water to saltwater but it is...

Cranberry Creek

Cranberry Creek

Cranberry Creek, a tributary to the Stillaguamish River, is home to endangered steelhead and bull trout. It is also an important salmon spawning stream, but an old, corroding culvert was preventing migrating fish from getting where they needed to go. A culvert...

Veterans Conservation Corps

Veterans Conservation Corps

The Veterans Conservation Corps provides opportunities for recently returned veterans to transition from military to civilian work through AmeriCorps service. The Veterans Conservation Corps completes numerous restoration projects across Washington state every year....

Sustainable Lands Strategy

Sustainable Lands Strategy

The Sustainable Lands Strategy is a game-changing partnership in Snohomish County. Historically, estuary restoration projects have been implemented without a clear vision of how those projects fit into the broader landscape with farming and flood control....

Salish Sea Stewards

Salish Sea Stewards

Skagit County Marine Resources Committee (MRC) established the Salish Sea Stewards program to engage residents in marine monitoring, restoration, and outreach projects. Volunteers receive professional training by local experts in nearshore ecology and a variety of...

Washington’s Local Source Control Partnership

Washington’s Local Source Control Partnership

Washington's Local Source Control Partnership offers small businesses in 19 Puget Sound communities free, hands-on pollution prevention assistance, such as spill prevention, proper chemical management, and other resources. Many pollution prevention programs focus on...

Floodplains By Design

Floodplains By Design

Floodplains by Design began with $500,000 in U.S. Environmental Protection Agency funding in 2012, and since then Floodplains by Design has invested more than $80 million in Puget Sound floodplain projects. This collaborative effort has brought local and tribal...